Mitch Owen’s parents on the ‘surreal’ moment their son guided Hurricanes to maiden BBL title

Mitch Owen was the hero the Purple Army were hoping for in the historic BBL grand final when the Hurricanes won their maiden title. His parents say it was a ‘surreal’ moment.

Mitch Owen of the Hurricanes looks on during the BBL The Final match. Picture: Steve Bell/Getty Images

Every over into the Hurricanes’ astonishing chase of Sydney Thunder to win a historic BBL title, chants of Mitch Owen’s name grew louder at Ninja Stadium.

Upon him notching his 100 runs, the stadium roared with delight that would’ve rocked Hobart.

That love for the boy from Kingston didn’t go unnoticed by the opener’s parents, who was among the full house.

“To see kids doing the chant, you just have to think how good’s that?” Mitch’s dad Marc said.

“It’s crazy how big everything is now.”

He was one of thousands of fans eager to catch a glimpse of his son, saying the family all knew Mitch had his Grand Final performance in him.

“We have always seen him bat like that, from a junior level to a club level,” he said.

“It was surreal being in the crowd, I’d describe it like being in a movie.

“You get engaged and involved with the characters and it was just surreal to see our Mitch on the field.”

Mitch Owen of the Hurricanes hits a six during the BBL The Final match. Picture: Steve Bell/Getty Images

The Owens were part of a mob of fans who rushed at the opportunity to celebrate the Hurricanes’ success at the Fans Day on Tuesday.

Mitch Owen was the name on everyone’s lips at the event, with young fans eager to greet him like brothers Michael, 10, and Liam Smith, 8.

“We were in the crowd and it was an incredible game,” Michael said.

“Mitch Owen’s definitely my favourite player. He was a great player last night, but I knew he could do it.”

Liam said he had long ago called the Canes’ Grand Final win.

“I said three matches ago that they were going to win,” he said.

“They’re a great team and they’ll win again next season for sure.”

Cricket Tasmania CEO Dominic Baker said the turnout to the Fans Day was incredible and a great sign of the future of youth participation in Tasmanian cricket.

“This day is as important as yesterday to me,” he said.

“You’ve got kids running around, playing cricket, enjoying activities and chanting about Mitchell Owen and Riley Meredith.

“It provides kids the opportunity to see their heroes and see what cricket is really all about.”

Mitch Owen reminisced on his own time as one of the kids playing cricket at the event, stating he was still in shock at the results of yesterday’s match.

“It’s very surreal, I didn’t think it would go that way,” he said.

“It wasn’t that long ago that I was one of these kids hanging out to meet the team, so this past 24 hours has been just crazy.”

Originally published as Mitch Owen’s parents on the ‘surreal’ moment their son guided Hurricanes to maiden BBL title